Quotable

Diana Butler Bass in The Practicing Congregation (Alban Institute, 2004)

Too often what Protestants read about their tradition is ultimately unimaginative—the same tired story lines about conflict, about liberal and conservative divides, and about mainline decline. Contemporary mainline Protestants have believed these stories, allowing their self-understanding to be colonized by storytellers outside their tradition whose work is sometimes driven by agendas that benefit from stories of conflict and decline. By believing others' stories and not having the confidence to imagine their own narratives, mainline Protestants have often fuelled the cycle of conflict and given into the temptation of spiritual despair.

Discuss.